The Aerial Horizon

[A Retrospective] I constantly hear noise, from the moment that I awaken, to the moment that I fall asleep…dawn breaks and I hear the questioning harrumphs and hawhoofs of my Labrador as she wonders when I will get the hint that she’s ready for a walk…out the door, I hear the buzz of cicadas and the distant wail of a passing train…we hit the trail and in the silence of the wood, the hushed sound of leaves swaying and intermingling with the delicate buffeting of a morning breeze, the intermittent clinking of dog tags, the the ruffle of feathers flushed out of a thicket…In the silent spaces, the humming and ringing of long silent jet engines distract me from the peace of the morning…then there’s music, always music, and the unfortunate cacophony of self modulating reporters and entertainers passing along the latest cause for alarm…In the apparent peace of the air, the roaring sound of friction is deafening as air currents blast, scrape, and buffet the skin of the aircraft…Noise Is Everywhere…Though the sounds are inescapable, projecting ourselves into the quiet cloudscape and landscape that surrounds us, we find a place far above the din and imagine a perfect silence as we float above the earth.